Outpatient treatment of pulmonary embolism.

Over the past decade there has been an increasing trend to manage many conditions traditionally treated during a hospital admission as outpatients. Evidence is increasing to support this approach in patients with pulmonary embolism (PE). In this article, we review the current status of outpatient management of confirmed PE and present a pragmatic approach for clinical healthcare settings.

Primary Intrapulmonary Thymoma Appearing as a Solitary Pulmonary Nodule: The "Master of Disguise" of Lung Tumors?: Case Report.

Primary intrapulmonary thymomas (PITs) are defined as thymomas arising in intrapulmonary locations, without an associated mediastinal component. They are rare lesions, the diagnosis of which can be very difficult. We present a case of PIT in an asymptomatic 74-year-old woman in whom pulmonary nodules were found on pulmonary angiography performed for an episode of pulmonary embolism.

Acute dyspnoea due to an unusual giant thymic cyst.

Does a percutaneous needle aspiration of thymic cyst should be considered? In case when a surgical excision is contradicted, the percutaneous needle aspiration should be performed. Surgical resection can be performed with a thoracotomy or a videothoracoscopic procedure, but sometimes, a median sternotomy is unavoidable.

Unilateral pulmonary hypoplasia in an adult patient.

Pulmonary hypoplasia (PH) is a developmental anomaly of the lung parenchyma, characterized by a decrease in the number and size of airways, alveoli and vessels. We present a case of a 31-year-old patient with a history of chronic productive cough and frequent respiratory infections, who was referred for investigation of abnormal chest x-ray. The combination of chest computed tomography (CT) and bronchoscopy set the diagnosis of left pulmonary hypoplasia and the patient was treated surgically with a left pneumonectomy.

Benign emptying of the post-pneumonectomy space: recognizing this rare complication retrospectively.

Patients presenting with a sudden drop in the pleural fluid level after a pneumonectomy in the absence of a recognizable bronchopleural fistula (BPF) have been classified as cases of benign emptying of the post-pneumonectomy space (BEPS). A retrospective study of 1378 pneumonectomies identified 4 cases of BEPS (0.29%).

Left thoracotomy utilizing splenectomy in blunt thoracic injury: An alternative surgical approach.

Introduction: Posterolateral thoracotomy could be an alternative surgical approach in selected cases coexistence of abdominal injuries with ipsilateral thoracic injury.

Presentation Of Case: A 65-year-old male with left sided chest injury was initially admitted to a regional health center after a crawler overthrow accident. He underwent chest tube drainage of left hemithorax and he was transferred immediately to our hospital.

The role of intercostal cryoanalgesia in post-thoracotomy analgesia.

Objectives: Patients undergoing thoracotomy were studied to compare the effects of cryoanalgesia, combined with intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (IVPCA), against IVPCA alone during the four days following surgery.

Methods: Fifty patients were randomized into two groups: an IVPCA group (n = 25) and an IVPCA-cryo group (n = 25). Subjective pain intensity was assessed on a verbal analogue scale at rest and during coughing.

Chylothorax complicating thoracic surgery: conservative or early surgical management?

Postoperative chylothorax is a rare complication in thoracic surgery. There is considerable controversy concerning the management of chylothorax with some physicians favoring conservative treatment while others favor a surgical one. Considering the current surgical experience with VATS and by reviewing the problems and outcome of conservative management, the guidelines regarding timing of surgery in patients with chylous leak need to be revised.

Chylothorax complicating thoracic aortic surgery.

Objective: Chylothorax is a very rare complication of patients undergoing thoracic aortic aneurysm repair. Possible mechanisms of this condition during thoracic aorta operations and current therapeutic strategies are analyzed according to our experience and thorough search of the English literature.

Methods: Current experience with chylothorax occurring during thoracic aortic surgery is analyzed in this review by collecting data retrieved from English literature research.

Thoracoabdominal aneurysm repair using a four-branched thoracoabdominal graft: a case series.

Revascularization of the visceral arteries during thoracoabdominal aneurysm repair is usually performed sequentially by an anastomosis between a prosthetic graft and an aortic patch. There are immediate operative risks such as bleeding and distortion. In the longer term, aneurysm, pseudo-aneurysm and rupture may occur.

Prophylactic preoperative levosimendan administration in heart failure patients undergoing elective non-cardiac surgery: a preliminary report.

Introduction: Preoperative optimization of cardiac failure (CF) patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery is of utmost importance. Levosimendan is a promising adjunct in our therapeutic repertoire for the treatment of CF; however, it has not been evaluated in CF patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery. Our objective was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of prophylactic preoperative levosimendan administration in these patients.

The significance of one-station N2 disease in the prognosis of patients with nonsmall-cell lung cancer.

Background: A retrospective study was conducted to define the characteristics and the prognosis of N2 disease subgroups according to their patterns of spread.

Methods: From January 1993 to December 2004, 1,329 patients underwent lung resection for bronchogenic carcinoma The records of all patients with positive mediastinal lymph nodes at the surgical specimen (pIIIA/N2) after radical resection were analyzed, and the pattern of mediastinal lymphatic spread was classified according to regional spread, to skip metastasis, and to one or two or more lymph node stations, in relation to primary tumor location. Age, sex, type of resection, right or left lesion, T status, primary tumor location, tumor size, tumor central or peripheral location, histology, and survival were recorded and analyzed.

The hybrid stent-graft technique: a solution to complex aortic problems and lessons learned.

Objective: The frozen elephant trunk technique has been recently presented in the literature and has been considered as a novel surgical option for single-stage repair of complex aortic pathology such as combined arch and descending thoracic aortic aneurysms.

Patients And Methods: The first patient, a 74-year-old male, was admitted severely symptomatic (interscapular pain), with aortic distal arch and proximal descending thoracic aortic aneurysm with a diameter of 6 cm. The second patient, a 72-year-old male, underwent descending aortic aneurysm stent grafting one year ago and was admitted gravely symptomatic (interscapular pain), with aortic arch aneurysm (diameter of 5.

Malignant conversion of a solitary papilloma in the distal trachea: report of a case.

A solitary papilloma versus the usual multiple lesions of papillomatosis is extremely rare. Even more infrequent is a solitary papilloma of the trachea in an adult patient. In the present report, a case of a solitary papilloma in the distal trachea is presented.

Recurrent massive hemoptysis due to postbronchotomy bronchial artery aneurysm: a case report.

Bronchial artery aneurysm (BAA) is a rare clinical entity. A case of intrapulmonary BAA associated with previous bronchotomy at the same site is described. A 22-year-old woman, who had undergone bronchotomy of the intermediate bronchus for the removal of a foreign body four years previously, presented with recurrent hemoptysis.

Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation due to left atrial appendage herniation and review of the literature.

The incidence of the isolated form of partial absence of the pericardium is a rare finding. The authors present a case of an isolated left sided pericardial defect with intrathoracic protrusion of the left atrial appendage found during a left upper lobectomy for lung cancer, unrecognized after serial echocardiographs and computed tomography scan of the thorax. The patient suffered from episodes of atrial fibrillation which disappeared after pericardial defect repair without antiarrhythmic medication.

Endovascular versus open repair for blunt thoracic aortic injury: short-term results.

Background: Endovascular stent grafting has been increasingly used as an alternative treatment modality. The aim of this study is to evaluate the immediate and short-term results of endovascular stent grafting repair after blunt thoracic aortic injury due to trauma.

Methods: A review of a tertiary trauma center registry identified all patients who suffered blunt thoracic aortic injury from 2002 to 2006.

Endovascular stenting for primary aortobronchial fistula in association with massive hemoptysis.

Aortobronchial fistula is a potentially lethal complication secondary to the repair of a descending thoracic aneurysm or the placement of a prosthetic graft. Few cases have been reported. Very rarely, primary aortobronchial fistula occurs in a patient who has no history of cardiac surgical intervention.

Fecopneumothorax: a rare complication of esophagectomy.

Intrathoracic colon herniation after esophagectomy is rare. Furthermore, fecopneumothorax is an extremely infrequent clinical entity. We believe this is the first report in the literature of a patient with fecopneumothorax due to diverticular perforation of intrathoracically herniated transverse colon 2 months after transthoracic esophagectomy and cervical esophagogastric anastomosis.